Part 1

“That’s it! My super hot flames will fix you for good!!!” Yelled a small little girl in her home as she boiled a pot of coffee with her hands.

“Why are you yelling like you’re fighting for your life?....” Whispered another young woman who was sitting in the living room holding her knees.

The small girl in question was Casey, while the other timid looking girl was Maria. Currently, they were trying to enjoy their time and relax while they still had a chance. What with all the stuff they were involved in, a moments rest was to die for. With a towel wrapped around her head, Casey inspected her now boiling pot of java. Satisfied, she smiled and nodded and poured it into one of her favorite mugs. She picked it up, slightly blew on it, and then took a nice long sip with her eyes closed simply taking in the aroma of brewed coffee through her small nostrils. Saying “Ahhh” as she parted her lips away from her mug, she opened her eyes and noticed Maria sitting alone in the dark living room.

It got her thinking, Maria was a very odd girl. When she was with Axel she was so clingy and bright but when she was alone she was so dark and distant. She was literally two faced. Though it sounded rude it was the truth. Casey turned and rummaged through her cupboards looking for another mug and eventually found the perfect plain white one. She grabbed it, poured some coffee in it and was halfway to her when she suddenly remembered something. She flashbacked to when she reunited with Axel and how he burned his lips due to the hot liquid. She looked down at the mug she was holding and saw steam rapidly rising from it. Though it hardly affected her, it was sure to affect Maria. So, she darted back to her kitchen and placed the cup inside of her freezer. She sat back for a solid 5 minutes before taking it out and taking a sip herself to test the waters. It was perfect. Now, she grabbed her own mug along with Maria’s and walked over to the living room where Maria sat.

“Hey! I’ve got a nice cup of joe with your name on it! Here you go!” She said sitting next to Maria. Maria looked at the coffee and wrinkled her nose uncomfortably when she caught the scent of it. Casey tilted her head in confusion and handed it to her.

“Hey, do you not like coffee or something?” she said sounding sad. Maria shook her head and let go of her feet. She took the cup of coffee and held it close to her mouth. She stared at it for a couple seconds before shutting her eyes and chugging it down.

“W-wait a minute, why are you drinking it so fast?...” she said as Maria kept her eyes shut and took one big gulp after another. When she finally finished, she quickly gave the cup back to Casey and held her stomach. Suddenly, she held her mouth and puffed her cheeks out, it was as if she was holding something in. She then decided that she could not hold it in any longer and made a break for her restroom where Casey heard her throw something back up. Bewildered, Casey put the cups down and followed her to the restroom where she found Maria kneeling next to the toilet which was flushing something down. Casey knelt next to her and rubbed her back as Maria wiped something off her face.

“If you don’t like it you should’ve just told me. I would’ve understanded.” she said with a soft tone. However, Maria shook her head as if telling her that that wasn’t it.

“It’s not that. It’s just, I have no idea why that happens. I remember being able to drink coffee normally. In fact, I loved it. But now, everytime I do I gag and spit it back up.. It frustrates me….It’s the same thing with pizza. Who doesn’t love some pizza?.....And yet I can’t eat it because I’ll spit it back out…...I just don’t understand what’s wrong…...I’m sorry…” She said as she stood up and washed her hands. As Casey watched her, she marvelled at the fact that Maria had finally said something sincere to her. She then stood up and took the towel off her head to hand to her.

“So you tried to see if you could drink it just now? Well silly, we can’t control how our body reacts. Some people just grow to hate certain things, we just have to learn to live with it, you know? Here, dry your hands.” she said to Maria handing her the towel when she turned off the sink. Maria thanked her and took it.

“Yeah, I guess I sort of have to…” She said somewhat softly. Casey smiled and looked slightly down. Maria was wearing a plain white T shirt with a black skirt on. Since it was kind of tight on her, she was able to notice the small bump that was forming on her stomach. Casey felt her face light up as she realized that this odd girl was on her way to becoming a mother.

“Promise me you won’t do anything like that again, okay? You need to make sure that nothing bad happens to the package you’re carrying.” Casey said as she walked out of the restroom. Maria followed her out and nodded her head.

“Yes, Okay. I’ll try and be safe from here on out…”

As Casey picked up her mug and sat back down on the sofa, she looked at the time and wondered where Axel might’ve gone. She adjusted her oversized shirt and crossed her small legs.

“Where do you think Axel went?” she asked.

“I’m not sure. I was asleep when he left so I wasn’t able to see...If I was I would’ve gone with him….”

They both sat in silence for a couple of moments wondering where everyone had gone as the curtains blew back and forth due to the wind coming in through her open window. Since the window was right next to her, the curtains smacked her in the face a few times before she finally felt fed up and stood up. The window was pretty tall so now she had trouble reaching the part that slid down. She hopped a few times before snapping her fingers and turning heel. Maria watched as she trotted over to her room and later came back with a stepping stool. She set it a few feet away from the window and took a couple steps back herself. It seemed like she wanted to run up and jump off the stepping stool to reach the window. Though, she could’ve just asked Maria to do it…

“I-I can close it if you want.’ She offered, but Casey shook her head.

“Thanks but no thanks. This curtain and I officially have beef which I must settle at once.” She said before taking off in a sprint and jumping off the stepping stool. For a moment there, everything was going smoothly until her body suddenly heated up and expanded. The sudden change threw her off and she ended up jumping straight through the window and landed outside on a bush. Maria closed her eyes as she heard the now full grown Casey fall. She rushed outside and found her on her back with a pair of furious eyes.

“That damned window was waiting for it too…..” she said as she wiped the dirt of her clothes. Maria giggled as she watched Casey stand up. It was at that moment where she caught sight of something truly terrifying. Her jaw dropped as she waved at Casey to quickly stand up. Casey took one good look at her and quickly jumped to her feet. When she did, she looked in the direction that Maria was looking and also widened her eyes. From where they were, off into the distance they could see a sea of explosions dancing in the sunset. Mechanical animals rampaged the city as distant screams were heard by them. Casey felt her heart jolt as she came back to her senses and acted quickly. She grabbed Maria’s hand and pulled her inside as as fast as she could.

“W-what are you doing!? W-w-w-w-what’s going on!?” she asked with her lips quivering.

“Clearly something super dangerous is going down and we’re about to be caught up in the middle of it. It’s no wonder Axel isn’t here right now.” She said to her while approaching the large container looking object otherwise known as her teleporter.

Maria widened her eyes when she realized that Axel might’ve been in danger, and not just him…. Without even thinking, she tried to break free and run but Casey’s grip was too strong.

“Don’t even think about it!” she told her.

“You’re not a fighter, you can’t fight!” She yelled as she began to type something into the small device on the teleporter.

“B-but Axel might-!” She started but Casey shook her head. “Don’t worry about him! For now worry about yourself!” Casey yelled as she thrusted Maria inside the machine. Maria showed confusion as Casey closed the door on her. Since the container was see through, she was still able to see Casey who finally started to slightly shake in what she could only assume was fear.

“Don’t worry, we’ll be fine. When you get to my house, no one will probably be home. You can either find my room and wait for me there or go back home. Anywhere but here is fine, Okay?” she said as she pressed her palms up against the glass. Maria stood watching her with worried eyes as she wondered why this was happening, and what even was happening.

“But, what about you?” she said as she wiped sweat from her brow. Casey smiled and pressed a button on the device which caused Maria to glow and soon fade away.

“I can fight. I can go and help, unfortunately. If I couldn’t, I swear I’d be the first one in here, but not while Axel and the others are out there….I wouldn’t live it down….” She said with chattering teeth as Maria completely faded away. When she was gone, Casey locked their location and made it unavailable to teleport back here. It was just a safety precaution in case Maria tried to fiddle with the other teleporter and come back. When that was done, she pressed a button on the machine which caused it to hide and transform into a regular pillar which appeared to be supporting her house. It looked really random there but it hid well nonetheless during house inspections.

Casey put her back up against it and slid to the ground as sweat flowed down her arms and forehead. Her breaths shook as she raised her hand to her face. She could clearly seeing it shaking.

“D-damn it…...it’s happening again…” She said feeling terror embrace her in its hold. She felt her pockets for her found and took it out. She had no missed calls that she could see which seemed odd. Regardless, she scrolled for Axel’s phone number and called it. She heard it ring multiple times but he didn’t answer. She dropped her phone on the ground and cursed her fate. If he would’ve answered, she would’ve known that he was safe and in turn she’d feed off his encouraging voice and gather the strength to get up. It wasn’t fair, ever since that day, situations like these were her absolute worst nightmare. Like when Sonic City was attacked, she had a huge panic attack but Natsumi was there to calm her wits…

(Damn….even if no one’s here, I have to go find them…..) she thought to herself standing up before she got second thoughts. She ran outside and made her way so as to not go directly into the chaos. After about 10 minutes, she felt something extremely familiar. It was a sign of body heat that she had felt often. When she stopped in her tracks and carefully followed it, she was led to a bench under a large tree. Once there, she found the remains of a broken phone and a grocery bag. She picked up the phone and recognized it to be Axel’s. She also looked at the bag and guessed that it must’ve belonged to him. She picked it up and looked inside. It held a familiar and delicious looking dessert that Casey was quite fond of.

“He was here….the trail’s still warm so he shouldn’t be too far…...and then there’s this gelatin…..was he planning to bring it to me?.....aww, sounds like something he used to do when we were kids…..”

Saying so to herself, she opened the package of gelatin and emptied its contents in her mouth. She then properly threw away the trash and held onto the broken phone. Though it wasn’t much to go off, she knew that he was definitely safe… somewhere out there and she would definitely find him and the others! With this new found strength filling her, Casey looked over at the sea of flames and cracked her knuckles before finally running straight for it.

Part 2

It was total chaos like he had never seen before. Buildings were on fire and multiple screams were heard left and right. It was like something out of an end of the world type movie. He wasn’t even in the city yet but he could already smell the smoke. At the moment, he was making his way down a hill that he had landed on and was doing his best not to accidentally run into a tree or trip. Surprisingly, his sense of balance was now distorted due to his back to back changes in size.

“Grandma lives near a laundromat, I remember that much….and it was somewhere in the middle of the city…..Damn it, I’m gonna have to start playing trial and error to find them.” He said as he started to run out of breath. At first he felt pumped and ready to roll but now that his sides were about to explode he wasn’t so sure. The last time he had visited his grandmother was a long time ago so he was still practically new to the city. Somehow, he’d have to avoid trouble and get to them safely…

“Help andrew defend the city….”

When Ella’s words replayed in his mind he stopped in his tracks and placed his hands on his knees. He started to catch his breath and felt sweat roll down his back. Was it right to be selfish and roll safely under the radar? Wouldn’t it be better if he fought alongside Andrew as best he could? But,in the end, weren’t these people…...strangers anyway?

(No no no….It’s not that I’m being an asshole here….I’m just trying to look out for my family is all…..surely anyone would do the same, yeah?) He thought trying to comfort himself. When he was ready to start gunning again, he quickly stretched his legs and went for it. Eventually, the city of Miami was mere feet away from him. When he hid behind a tree, he surveyed the area and confirmed the situation. Sure enough, it was practically just how it was in Savant island, only this time there were far more men in black than there were mechanical animals. People were running like crazy as he watched the men in black destroy everything they saw in sight with these strange swords they had. Axel started to shake nervously as he looked around for a chance to slip through into the alley’s. After about 30 seconds, he saw a perfect opportunity and he made a run for it. Never had he ran so fast in his life, it felt like he put Usain Bolt to shame in that one sprint.

He looked behind him and made sure that no one had actually spotted him before taking off again. He probably spent another good 5 minutes simply trying to navigate his way through the maze like alleys. At some point, he stopped and realized that he didn’t even know which way he was heading for anymore.

He slammed his fist against the brick wall next to him and started to regret the fact that he didn’t ever think of buying a compass for times like these. Though, who would actually anticipate running for their lives like this? In any case, going anywhere and getting out of here was now his main priority. He started running again and turned into another alleyway that amazingly led him to a fork in the road. To his grand fortune, the path on the right clearly led him to the outside as he could see the street from where he was. The one on the left,however, was covered in a thick layer of black smoke due to the building next to it burning. So, the clear choice in this situation was to get out of here as soon as possible.

Nodding his head, he turned heel and bolted down the right alleyway when he suddenly heard a blood curtling scream. It was enough to stop him in his tracks and receive a chill down his spine. It had come from where the left alley was.

“D-don’t do it….” he said to himself as he watched the bright exit just a few feet away. If he just kept going and ignored it he’d be out of here in no time…...but, the screaming was getting louder and louder and eventually even he started to feel the agonizing pain the person must’ve been in. He picked up his shaking hands and covered his face. Try as he might, he could not stop shaking them…

(I…...really hate myself…) he thought to himself as he did a 180 and headed for the burning alleyway. He crossed his arms in front of his face and went head first into the smoke. Since he could not really see 5 feet ahead of him, he used the screams of pain to lead him in the right direction. When the yell sounded like it was directly above him, Axel squinted his eyes and looked up. He could see nothing but a building that had multiple windows spitting fire out of them. However, there was one that was still in tact with what he could only assume was a person hanging their head outside, a female who was yelling at the top of their lungs.

“Hold on! I’m going to get you!” he yelled at her hoping to catch her attention. Though she caught sight of him, she did not stop yelling. From where he was, he saw that she was an african american woman probably in her 30s. Axel felt his throat itch and he covered his mouth with his shirt. He could blow the smoke away with a blast of wind but that would only make the fire worse. If he used ice and cooled the air down to fast that would cause the molecules in the building to shrink and in turn cause it to collapse. It was like how cool air that was rapidly heated caused it to expand and almost explode. Besides, he wasn’t sure he could use much of it, or if it would even work! But he had to do something and fast. He bent down low and covered his body in bolts of electricity and jumped up as far as he could until he reached the window where the lady was still screaming. He managed to grab onto the edge of the window and jumped inside. When he made it in, the woman stopped screaming and watched him in slight terror mixed with awe. She then forgot about the specifics and grabbed onto him and quickly pointed toward a door that was leaking black smoke. She couldn’t talk, she only gurgled up random syllables before finally losing the strength to talk and falling limp in his arms, she was out of oxygen! She had to be since even his lungs were starting to burn. He quickly held her tight and jumped out of the window with her. When he landed on the ground, he didn’t wait another second to bring her over to the right lane where the air was clean and laying her against the wall.

“Are you okay? What’s your name?” he started to say as calmly as possible but the woman was not responding to his questions. The one thing she was saying was not making sense to him.

“Mygh…..my…..bay…..beeggg….” She said as her eyes started to leak water. Axel started to cough profusely when finally something clicked in his head, she was saying “my baby!” If that was the case then he had to go back pronto.

“Oh my goodness! Your baby? Don’t worry miss! I’m going to try and get him, okay? Just please wait right here!” He said as he ran back into the fray. He made the jump back into the building and once again covered his mouth. He gave one look at the door and already knew he was going to regret this, he got in a running stance and charged at the door like a football player. When he broke through, the door flew off its hinges and fell to the ground with him. Axel quickly got up and looked around the hallway that was colored red due to the fire. To his right, there was no way he could get through since it was completely engulfed in flames. To his left,though, was still manageable. He ran over and touched the handle of the first door he saw but immediately regretted it as it burned him. That could only mean that the room was already completely burned up. Further down, however, there was another room where he attempted to freeze the handle but failed.

“Fuck this” he said as he choked on more smoke and coughed. He bent his leg back and busted the door open with his foot. When he ran inside, he found a sight which would forever be engraved in his memory.

Two young boys, probably around the age of 3 and the other one 9, were holding onto each other, both sitting on the one bed in the room, with lifeless eyes. Even before Axel ran up to them, he had already known that it was too late, The room wasn’t even on fire, it was just filled with a thick cloud of smoke, so they must’ve died due to asphyxiation. Axel felt his heart ache when he made the terrible decision of just leaving them there, because it was already too late, they had no pulse. So he closed their eyes with his fingers and gently laid them down. It was then when he heard kicking from the other side of the wall. The hairs on the back of his neck rose as he realized that someone must’ve been inside. Without even thinking, he cocked his fist back and punched a hole straight through the wall using super strength, a move which he instantly regretted,but not because it damaged him.

The situation in the other room was just as bad as he thought it was, then he saw something that completely topped everything that he had seen up to now. To his left, he saw what he could only assume was human still rolling in flames. It was small, thin, and had skin that was charred black. It wasn’t even recognizable anymore,like a zombie from a video game. And the smell, it was horrible. But clearly, it was the smell of flesh burning. Its skull had bits and remnants of hair attached to it and its jaw was still moving.

Axel felt his stomach turn as he felt like screaming and throwing up at the same time. Tears filled his eyes but didn’t stay long as they were quickly dried up by the heat. He held his mouth to keep his inside from coming up and made a run back through from where he came from and jumped out of the window from the boy’s room. He didn’t even bother trying to land and let himself fall on a pile of trash bags. With his eyes wide open, he rolled over and immediately threw up on the ground with fresh tears now running free. He crawled like a baby away from the scene and struggled to keep calm as his nerves threatened to burst. His head was spinning and his stomach ached. He held his pain filled head and got to his knees before releasing a long and terror filled scream.

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHAHAHAAHA!!!!!!!???”

He was completely mortified. Completely stunned and terrified and he had no idea what to do. He was so scared that he didn’t even notice himself pass out from getting too lightheaded.

When he rose his head, he had trouble figuring out where he was and what he was doing before it all suddenly washed back over him like a bullet. When it did, he threw up again but was able to keep himself from going nuts. He turned around and noticed that the building in question was now burning rubble. It had probably fallen while he was out cold.

(The lady!) he suddenly remembered. He staggered to his feet and walked over to where he had last left her. Thankfully, she was still there when he got there. He staggered to her and knelt down near her. Up until then, he had a smile on his face until he grabbed her hand. It was cold and he felt no pulse. He grabbed it with both hands and noticed that this woman was not african american at all, she was just covered in so much ash. And for some reason, the palm of her hands had already been wiped clean and were somewhat moist. Though, he didn’t pay much attention to it. He placed her on her back and quickly tried to bring her back by performing CPR but once again it was far too late. When he looked down at her face, he noticed a drop of water fall on her cheek. It took him a while to get that it was his own tears which were no falling non stop.

“I-I’m so sorry…..I failed….I couldn’t…..save them…..” He said to her through sobs. He punched the ground and continued to sob for so long that he lost track of time. After some time, he laid her body against the wall and peacefully folded her hands on her stomach. If he had the time, he’d bury her, but he was running dangerously low on it. So, he promised to come back once this was all over. Giving her body one final look, he comforted himself by looking at her face which seemed to be at peace in her final moments. It must’ve comforted her to know that someone would be able to rescue her children. At the very least, he had managed to do that, give her a false sense of peace…

When he saw something sticking out of her coat pocket, he reached for it and took it out. It was a picture which had a family of four. There was the woman he had saved, dressed beautifully in an all white wedding dress smiling looking like the happiest person alive, and a bald happy looking man dressed in a tuxedo. In between them were three young children also dressed for the occasion. Two young handsome boys, and one young and thin beautiful little girl. Though he tried to help it, he couldn’t keep himself from crying again.

“I’m so sorry…..I’m too fucking weak……” He said with a cracking voice.

Biting down on his jaw so hard he thought his teeth would burst, He folded the picture and put it in his pocket and paid his final respects to the woman before painfully running out of the alley and into the streets. Never would he ever regret making a decision as much as he did tonight….

Part 3

“Damn it, Lucy…..you’ve really done it now….” Lucy said to herself as she ran through a disaster filled city. However, it was not the city of Savant Island. In the heat of the moment, seconds after Axel left Thor, Lucy made a very quick and rash decision which in hindsight was really stupid of her. Without thinking, she ran to her computer and teleported to the city of Miami with nothing but the clothes on her back and a small bag purse. Saphire did try to stop her but Lucy did not listen and went anyway. Though she successfully made it to the shores of Miami, she had no way of knowing where Axel would land. She cursed her ignorance and ran to a place of safety. She stayed in safe place where she could see the entire shore but after 30 minutes of waiting she decided that it would be best to run into the city and search for him. Thor was definitely not a 30 minute trip for Axel, he had to of have made it to the city already. In which case, she was sure she’d run into him one way or another.

If she were to pick a movie to describe the situation in Miami, she would have to go with the old Avengers movie scene where New York City was being attacked by an army of robots and Loki being the primary villain. It was something like that. Miraculously,however, Lucy had not run into much danger. She had to evade a few falling debris and avoid the gaze of the shadow hunters but other than that she was still running like a champ. At one point, she made a run down an empty street and went past the entrance of an alleyway but not before catching something from the corner of her eye. She stopped mid sprint and traced her steps backwards. When she was in front of the alleyway entrance, she saw a woman covered in black lying up against the wall. Even from where Lucy was standing, she could hear her wheezing and desperately trying to catch her breath.

It was true that Lucy was in a hurry, but there was no way she could just run off like this. She quickly turned to her and ran into the alleyway. She quickly knelt in front of her and started to ask what was the matter.

“F-fire…..I was just…..save….fire……” She struggled to say through coughs. Lucy caught the word fire and quickly looked around for one. She didn't look long, right down the lane where the road split she could see large amounts of smoke spitting out from one of the paths. She figured that she must’ve come from there. Just from the looks of it, it was unlikely that there were any more survivors. This woman had to of have been lucky to escape. And yet, she couldn’t explain why she suddenly got the urge to go around that corner and check it out, as if she’d find something valuable…..

“*cough**cough*!!!” She heard the lady spit out large amounts of saliva and blood. Lucy exclaimed and quickly turned her attention back to her. She reached into her handbag and pulled out a couple of baby wipes to wipe the ash and dust off her hands.

“Oh! Here, don’t touch your mouth yet! Let me clean off your hands for you!!” She said while grabbing her wrists and wiping the dirt off her palms. However, the woman simply shook her head and slowly started to talk more clearly, and it was then that Lucy looked up with wide eyes as she understood just what that had to mean.

“Listen here, missy…….I am so happy to know…..that there are still young and bright people in this world like you and that boy….”

“H-hold on! Don’t talk like that! You’re going to be okay!” Lucy started to say with a shaky smile.

“Right now, Evil and Malice is something that appears to be overshadowing the Good. It almost seems like we’re living in a hopeless world where everyone only looks out for themselves, but today I finally get to see with my own two eyes that that isn’t the case” The woman said with a clear and straight tone, something that Lucy had not heard her done before. Lucy finished wiping off her palms and held them with her own as she felt her lips quiver and her eyes fill with water.

“Before you came, I saw countless people run by this alley, and most saw me in here, but not one person came to see if I was alright. It was just you my dear girl. But even before that, that angel sent from the heavens managed to save me just as I had begun to lose what little hope I had. Saved me just in time for me to realize that good still existed…”

As she said this to her, Lucy felt more and more guilt enter her being and weigh over her like a bunch of books on a desk. Her heart was tugged at and the cold embrace of sadness gripped her to the very core of her being. It was not fair, why had things escalated this far? She never wanted any of this to happen…..who would ever want this to happen?...

“By now, I figure that the boy has failed to save my children...but that’s okay, because pretty soon I will be joining them and I wouldn’t want it any other way….” She said as her chest started to slowly raise and fall with every breath she took.

“P-please….don’t die here…” she said to her with tears running down her cheeks and onto her lap. And yet, the woman watched her with twinkling eyes and a smile, as if saying that it was alright.

“Before I go, tell me your name…” she said while whispering. Lucy heart began to ache even harder than ever but there was just no way she could refuse, and so she told her…

“L-lucy…..Lucy Renford of the Peace Keepers…..and I promise you, they are not evil like they make them out to seem, it’s a different organization named the Shadow Hunters who has been sullying their name! But I swear! Me and my team will put a stop to all of this!!”

It was a final attempt to give her peace, to let her know that good was definitely something that still existed in this world.. It was not overshadowed by darkness, it was merely hiding in the shadows waiting for the moment to strike and once and for all rid the world of evil! And it would be done. She knew it would….if anyone could…..he could….Axel could do something to stop them…..with him there...she was sure….. Just being near him was enough to make her forget about everything….all of her sins, all of her flaws…..he was her escape!!

The woman slightly widened her eyes as far as they could go before taking in one final breath and saying her last words with a very peaceful smile. “I see…...than…...k,you…..” Then her hands at last went limp in Lucy’s palm, and the faint pulse she felt soon disappeared. Lucy slowly released her hands and placed them next to her body. In the very end, she was able to die with peace of mind. It comforted her to know that much. Lucy stood up and wiped her tears away but they did not stop flowing. She shook her head and turned to run away while releasing a few sobs. At the same time, she thought she heard a building collapse behind her but it was drowned out by the sound of her own heart beat.

Lucy continued to run for as long as she could completely forgetting the entire reason that she had come in the first place. Never had she had to experience something like that, even with all the pain that she had been through she never knew that she could feel this much pain from a stranger’s death. It was such a…..surreal feeling. Her heart rattled against her rib cage and threatened to break free as her veins pumped out hot blood. It did not even occur to her to hide or avoid the shadow hunters, she just ran while her thoughts ran wild.

Eventually,however, she was literally blown off course by a huge explosion that erupted in the building that was next to her. She screamed and covered her face to protect herself but she knew she was about to feel a world of pain.

When she crashed against some rubble, her entire backside screamed in pain by the impact. She gasped and felt her breath leave her as she felt warm liquid spray out of her mouth. She reached for her aching back as she slowly squirmed on the ground. Dust rose around her and covered her entire body causing her to cough as she accidentally inhaled some.

“What…...the hell…….” She slowly quivered. When she managed to wipe the dirt off her eyes and lips, she discovered what appeared to be a mechanical T-rex the size of a 4 story building stomping around and swinging its tail. Its red mechanical eyes had no actual target in sight but was simply attacking indiscriminately. When she saw its large foot hover over to where she was standing, she quickly ignored all of her pain and rolled away. Once she had completed a full 3 cycles, she extended her arms and pushed out to jump to her feet and used that same momentum to flip backwards once more. Seconds later, another crash caused by the T rex’s foot slamming down where she once was blew her back a couple of feet but she managed to keep her stance and land on her feet.

(A simple beast like this isn’t gonna stir up a conversation so I better make like a hockey player and get the puc out of here!)

Thinking so, Lucy successfully managed to make herself giggle and wiped away her remaining tears. It was no time to mourn, right now she had to focus on staying alive. If she could do that then-

“Oh…..oh my God…….” she heard her own voice say in complete and utter shock.

She went pale the second she caught sight of the color red leaking from the place where the first explosion had blown her away, but that was not all. She saw chunks of scattered meat and what looked like rows of spilled sausages. At the very front of that mess was the upper half of a torso belonging to a middle aged man whose lightless eyes seemed to fall right on her. It had appeared that his lower half was caught under a large piece of rubble.

Lucy’s eyes immediately lost their spark when she saw this and momentarily lost the will to run. Luckily she didn’t look for too long or else her lunch would’ve saw the light of day again.

She covered her mouth and ran the opposite direction right as the robo-dino started to swing its tail and stomp like a gorilla. Lucy ran around a corner and made her way towards an underground entrance she happened to spot. She quickly jogged down and started to regret it as she noticed that it was pitch black. On the bright side, metaphorically speaking, the screams and sounds of destruction were slowly getting quieter and quieter the farther she went down. Eventually, the noise was almost completely blotted out save for a few rumble and shakes from the ceiling followed by dust falling.

“M-my goodness…...just how far down is this place?....” she whispered to herself afraid to talk any louder.

When she finally reached the ground down below, she looked around and waited for her eyes to adjust to the darkness. When it did, she was eventually able to make out small balls of light that illuminated small areas. She reached into her purse and took out her phone. She navigated it and turned on the flashlight. Though it wasn’t too powerful, it at least was able to show what was a foot in front of her. Taking a couple steps forward, she passed several items that made up an underground subway. Benches, directories, customer services, ticket booths, etc. However, there was not a soul in sight from what she could tell.

That wasn’t even the worst of it. Since it was so quiet, the smallest of noise startled the life out of her. Footsteps? It had to be the enemy! Quickly! Hid- Oh, it was just the sound of water dropping…. A laser about to fire? Quickly! Hid- Oh wait, it was just a pack of mice squealing…

(If this keeps up, I’ll die of a heart attack…) she thought to herself as she continued forward.

(I just can’t take this pressure...I really wish Axel was……!!!!....Axel! I can’t believe I forgot I was here for him!) she said while jamming her fist on her head, softly though. She had been so distracted by…..death..that she forgot about the entire reason she came out here in the first place. At this point, there was no reason to continue being down there since Axel would clearly not be in a place like this so she decided to head back up top to continue her search properly. But, when she turned around, the light of day peaking from the staircase up was now but a spec. Obviously, she had been walking for quite some time and hadn’t noticed. Normally, she would’ve gone back with no problem, but if she were honest, she was actually quite afraid of going back. The darkness wasn’t exactly buddies with her after all. Which meant, she’d have to emerge from the next exit.

“What are we even doing that here, huh? Why aren’t we fucking shit up from above ground?” She suddenly heard a voice say. This time for real she swore she just about died and came back in the matter of seconds. She froze in place as she heard a second guy respond to the first.

“I already told you, we need to head west and rendezvous with the others.”

"God damn it..."

Lucy figured out that they were coming from behind her far down the tunnel where she first entered and felt her soul leave her being as she thought that she had only just barely managed to avoid them without even knowing. She quickly turned off her flashlight and hid behind the first thing she could find, a thin directory booth. She wasn’t sure if she’d be safe but she dropped down low behind it anyway. She closed her eyes and started to listen very closely in hopes of knowing when they would pass her. After about 10 minutes, their footsteps were now clear as day and their voices echoed throughout the tunnels and sounded much louder. They were directly in front of her.

“You heard about what the boss is planning to do?” One of the men said with a deep voice.

“I think it’s fucked up….Here I was thinking that we’d have to simply lure out the girl, Elizabeth, but then I hear that the boss had something like that in mind… Making our jobs fucking harder than they should be…” The one with a higher pitched voice replied.

“Okay, so you did hear about it…..But do you think it’s true? Do you think they really exist?” The man with a deep voice said sounding somewhat spooked.

“I can’t say for sure. The boss isn’t one to talk to his men, he just gives us orders, you know that… but that doesn’t mean that we don’t hear from those who serve him directly. I’ve heard all kinds of crazy shit, but this more recent one I heard takes the cake.” The high pitched guy stopped momentarily probably hesitating to speak his next words before continuing on anyway.

“Project Armageddon…… and if what I heard about it is true, then the six paths ain’t really six as of right now. It’d make sense, no one’s ever even seen the other four before, but we’ve heard of their power…. Power rivaling that of the gods in ancient folklore.” the man said with a shaken tone as if not wanting to believe it.

“Four of them…..can you believe it? I heard each has the power to conquer an entire country. Not only that, I heard their energy is enough to power said country for days! Truly works of legends…..but you’d think they’d be just that, Legends.. And that’s only a small piece of the plan, the rest is just…..crazy to think about…” the man with a deep voice said as he crossed his arms.

“I hear ya. Fucked up shit….gives me the heebie jeebies just thinking about it…..and to think it all comes down to the “Lamb”….man, almost makes me feel sorry for the poor chap.”

“Yeah, and to think it takes an entire month-” The man with a higher pitched voice said until they suddenly heard the sound of dirt scraping against the ground. It was then when they quickly turned and looked around.

“The fuck was that?”

“Probably just a sewer rat or something, let’s just get back up top. I’m done wasting my time here.” The man with a deep voice spoke with a tone of slight annoyance. However, his partner raised his arm and shook his head.

“Nah, you were the one that wanted to come...besides, you feel that?......The feel of a heart beating rapidly....the sound of a pulse accelerating, it’s as clear as day…..someone’s been listening in…” He said as started to walk back to where he came from. The man with a deep voice stood and watched him as he too began to notice the tension in the air that someone else was emitting. It appeared that someone had indeed been nearby.

The high pitch man was walking and listening intently as he slowly eyed the area. “I know you’re here..” He said as menacingly as possible. “At this point, I can smell your fear little man….”

(Jokes on you buddy, I’m a girl!!) Lucy thought as she tightly held her mouth shut. She refused to move even an inch and carefully tried to calm her breathing. But it just wasn’t making any sense, she hadn’t moved at all and yet something had made a noise similar to a shoe rubbing against dirt. She wasn’t even feeling too much fear. In fact, she was relieved since they were leaving but then this happened!

*BOOM*

“Boo!”

The man quickly jumped around a small thin booth and yelled as scary as he could but it was in vain as there was no one was there. He scratched his head defeated and looked around confused.

“Congratulations, you look like an idiot. Just leave it be and let's go up.” The man with a deep voice said sounding slightly amused. He turned heel and continued to walk the way he was going telling his comrade to do the same. The man with a high pitched voice shook his head in anger and anger and followed his partner with his head hung low.

After the coast was clear, the hand holding her mouth was lifted and she was at last able to properly breathe, but not talk just yet. In the seconds that she heard one of the men approach her hiding spot, she knew that she was a goner and had shut her eyes and said her final prayers but then, to her complete shock, the small door in the booth quietly swung open and someone pulled her in without making a noise. Just as she was going to scream, the person covered her mouth and quietly told her to hush. Like her, she could feel that whoever this was was also scared because their heart was jumping like crazy against her head.

When it was all over, the person once again swung the door open and led her out. She was practically running blindly so she let the person guide her through the darkness. After a couple of seconds, she heard the sound of a heavy door swing open and she got pulled inside. Then, after moving left and right presumably dodging tables or chairs, they reached another door and also went through it. This time, however, she was able to see clearly. She was in a room with a staircase that led to another door which allowed what could only be sunlight in, it had to be the light of day!

She did get excited but she didn’t let herself talk yet out of fear. At the very least, in this slight amount of light, she could tell that the person holding her was a man. He continued to lead her up the stairs and quickly flung open the door. He pulled her in and made sure to close the door. When it was shut, he locked it and pushed a large metal locker in front of it to cover it. Once that was done, he dusted off his hands and took in a deep breath.

“U-um…..Thanks but, who are you?” she nervously asked her savior.

“Don’t worry missy, I don’t want to hurt you or anything like that. I’m just an old man who saw you needed help is all” The man said finally turning to look at her with the warmest smile she had seen so far. He was a short but toned old man. His hair was gray and short and his face showed the years he had been living. His eyes were brown and warm and his hands were fragile. He must’ve been at least 60. He wore a long brown coat with a hoodie and some work boots.

“I’m John, pleasure to meet you. And you are?”

“Oh, I’m Lucy, sir. The pleasure is all mine!” she said with her confidence returning.

“Well, Lucy, welcome to my shop here in Miami! It’s completely safe here so far! It’s somewhat hidden and really sturdy so I don’t think you’ll have to fear from much! Go ahead and talk all you like! Make yourself comfy while the authorities sort things out!” the old man said as he walked out of the small room and out into another. Lucy followed him reluctantly and ended up in what appeared to be a small coffee shop. It was probably about the size of her living room back home and only had about 4 tables meant for four people.

Outside, she could see absolutely nothing.

“We’re buried, my place here was surrounded by tall buildings and they all suddenly came crashing down but my little place somehow managed to survive. Though, the ceiling is a little caved in…” he said with some awe in his tone. Lucy widened her eyes and nodded. She sat in one of the chairs and took a moment to process everything that had transpired up to now. She was pretty spooked to say the least.

“So...what were you doing down there anyway, sir?” she asked him.

“Well,I figured I better get out of here before it all fell down on me so I took a detour through the door in the back that led to the subway. It was dark as hell and I couldn’t see a darn thing but I did hear what sounded like footsteps. So, I quickly hid in the small booth and tried to see who was coming. Turns out it was just a boy who looked lost and defeated. can't blame him, who knows what that poor soul has seen. I was going to approach him until I saw what was giving him light. It was a freaking ball of flame just floating in the palm of his hand! I thought he was one of them peacekeepers so I continued to hide! Then I heard more footsteps and I swear he jumped higher than me,literally! He blew out the flames and I didn’t see him again. That’s when you came in, but then after that another pair came in! Those guys actually meant business though So I couldn’t just leave ya. So I grabbed you and brought you here…” the old man had said as he poured coffee into a mug and prepared it.

Listening to the old man’s story, Lucy finally understood what had gone on. All that was left to wonder was just who it was that had also been down there with them and hid.

“Well, I thank you, sir. If it weren’t for you, who knows what would’ve happened..”

“Don’t worry, my dear. Here, have some coffee to ease your nerves.” The old man kindly offered to which Lucy happily accepted. She took the small mug and stole a sip from it. She felt the warm and sweet liquid run down her throat to her stomach and gently soothe her being. It was nice to feel so safe. It was important to feel this way in such times, and as such she should take advantage because soon she would have to head back into the fray….

Part 4

Turning back time to just after Lucy had escaped with the old man, up on the ceiling of the same subway tunnel was a boy hanging on for dear life.

“Jesus Christ…...Things just keep getting worse and worse….” He said with his teeth chattering. Axel Ison was just trying to evade the crazy streets and find some sanctuary underground. Instead, he felt even worse down here and was forced to take refuge up on the ceiling hanging on to one of the support pillars like a cat stuck on a tree.

(that girl escaped with the old man so that’s good. For a second I thought I was going to have to fight…) He thought as he looked at the ground down below readying himself to drop. He had seen her quickly try and hide and thought she was going to successfully avoid them until he himself started to tense up when he heard what they were talking about. Hearing them talk of extremely powerful beings made him cringe and caused his foot to slip on the pillar. Then, when he saw that they had heard him, his pulse went off the charts and he apparently made his presence known like a fool. Unfortunately, they somehow went for the girl thinking it was him. When he saw that one of them got closer and closer to where she was, he readied his fist and prepared to launch an attack. Luckily, someone swooped in and saved her out of nowhere. He felt relieved and watched as they both ran off. It was dark so he could only slightly make out their silhouettes, which should have been otherwise impossible but his eyesight was feeling brand new lately.

Finally, he jumped down from the ceiling and controlled the wind under his feet to land softly, only he failed and crashed through a bench that broke his fall. He made light of the situation and laughed at his own failure going down the path that the other two had gone.

Ideally, he wanted to get out of there as soon as possible but he also wanted to avoid as much trouble as possible. doing both was proving to be difficult. He thought there'd be people down here to help him find his way but that didn't work out. For whatever reason, the subway routes were completely empty. There was nothing on or even any incoming trains. That was enough to make him wonder, why was that so? Sure, things had escalated quickly in such a short amount of time but surely the trains wouldn’t of have known that quickly? And even if they did it wasn’t like they could just stop and turn around so easily. So then why?

But hold on, it got better. He had been on Miami for almost an hour now, but not once had he even heard the siren of an ambulance or police car. There was no type of professional help around but he couldn’t fathom why.

As he continued running down the subway tunnel, he eventually found a stairway that would more than likely lead him back up to high ground. He turned there and slowly crept through the door. He looked around as quietly as he could and found himself directly outside. He closed the door behind him and quickly assessed what was going on around him. People were still running for their lives and buildings were still suffering damages from all of the robot animals. Luckily, however, there was no sign of actual shadow hunters around from what he could see. He had no idea what time it was but the sun was just about getting to call it a day. He couldn’t even see it anymore, the sky was just painted orange with its residue. He grit his teeth and continued to run down the street desperately keeping an eye out for anything that resembled his grandmother's neighborhood.

And still, just like last time, there was no sign of police anywhere. There were no law enforcement anywhere. Were his ears playing tricks with him? Or were there really no sirens anywhere? He would think that there would at least be some type of helicopters somewhere. Even media helicopters would’ve been nice but there was absolutely nothing. Just the sounds of destruction and agony was all that could be heard to him. This irritated him to no end. Nothing was making sense!

When a crash happened in front of him and blew his hair back, he had been so distracted that he only just barely managed to hold his ground and stay steady. He threw his arms up and shielded his face before a large piece of rubble hit his stomach and made him fall back. He did cough up some saliva and air in his lungs but luckily whatever was in his stomach was emptied out earlier so that was all that came. His eyes shriveled up into tiny dots that wobbled as he nervously looked up at would likely be his next foe.

“W-what’s next in this hell hole, huh?....” he said to himself as he gathered his breath. What had crashed through the building in front of him was what appeared to be the bottom half of a gorilla type robot. Its giant leg twitched as electrical cords sticking out of its top where it was ripped in half crackled. Standing directly on top of it was a guy with brown skin, almost a darker shade than him, and slicked back greasy hair. His jaw line was straight and his eyebrows were thin, he chewed on wheat as he adjusted his leather jacket and checked his jeans for any signs of dust. Satisfied, he swiftly spun out what could only be a hair comb and gave his hair one stroke to the back. The man then put it away and simultaneously caught sight of him sitting there looking spooked. For a second there, it seemed like he was about ready to ignore him but as quick as he looked away he looked right back almost breaking his own neck. He took out a cellphone from the inside of his jacket and fiddled with it and seemed to be comparing something as he looked at him and then back at his phone multiple times. Finally, faster than he could react, that man appeared before him and showed him a very familiar picture.

“Yo!? Buddy!? Tell me why you look just like the kid here?” he said in what Axel thought was a strange australian accent.

It was a photo of what looked liked Axel himself in a hospital bed wrapped in bandages. The room he was in made him remember the house where he officially met Ella. Which meant, that was more than likely right after he first used Power Magnet.

“Uhhhh, I think that is me……” Axel said feeling slightly scared.

The greaser looking man nodded a few times and then put his phone away. He stood up and placed his hands in his jacket.

“You don’t say? So, then it’s you then? The magnet boy?”

“I have a name! It’s Axel Ison not magnet boy!-......W-wait? Don’t tell me, are you with the peacekeepers??” Axel said as soon as he started thinking logically. It only made sense. This man was clearly powerful yet he wasn’t wearing black or had a strange S mark symbol on him. Then, before he left Ella had told him that her team was out here helping out Andrew. Since this guy had that picture of Axel Ella must’ve been the one that gave it to the him.

“Yes sir, I am. The name’s Colt. Come on, kid, time terr’ get up now” He said extending his arm to give him a hand. Axel quickly took it and felt himself get pulled to his feet. He dusted himself off and quickly forgot about the pain in his abdomen.

“Colt? It’s great to meet you!”

“I’d love to sit down and have some tea but unfortunately we have a much bigger crisis going on here.” Colt said as he cracked his knuckles and looked to his right. When he did, Axel did too and saw a group of men in black robes making their way toward them. Colt’s arms went up in flames as particles of energy wrapped around his clenched fists. He raised them as the energy shaped and soon turned solid. It molded into two large and thick pocket knives with both metal handles shaped like brass knuckles. A killer two-in-one weapon that manifested out of thin air. There was no doubt about it now, this man possessed the ability known as the Soul of Shadows.

“Quit gawking,kid! Time to get yerr' ass in gear and show me what you’re made of!” Colt yelled as he charged the group of shadow hunters. He threw a punch at the first guy he saw and got him clean in the jaw. That same guy was sent flying and knocked back a few more. The other shadow hunters then pulled out swords of their own and all circled around Colt. Colt,however, kept his cool and even smiled.

“Ah, you think you have a chance ganging up on me, do ya? Well then, by all means have at it.”

One by one they charged and one by one they were taken out by Colt almost effortlessly. Axel stood in the background simply watching in awe. Then, from somewhere behind him he heard a woman screaming for help. He turned to see one running away while holding her right shoulder. Axel froze in place as his blood turned cold. The woman was missing her right arm. It had been severed clean off and blood was spurting out uncontrollably. Following close behind was another shadow hunter sadistically swinging her sword around.

“Help!someone please save me!!!” he heard the woman scream.

“Oh come on,darlin’! We ain’t done yet! Come back so I can take off a leg, then you can really say your life costed and arm and a leg!”

As Axel watched that exchange go down, his legs reflexively gave out and he fell back. He heard the sounds of constant chattering as his cheeks began to slowly vibrate. It seemed that his teeth were chattering against his will. Behind him, Colt yelled after him and ordered him to snap out of it.

“Kid!? Come on now!!! This is our first time meeting and this is the impression you wanna leave me with!? Hurry up and help her god damn it!! Before it’s too late!!!”

The woman fell due to tripping on some debris and ate rocks as she skidded across the ground. Normally, she would’ve been able to keep her head up but her dominant arm was missing. So, the small part of her right shoulder did move as if her arm was there but it did nothing but dirty the wound. Tears rained down her cheek as the shadow hunter approached her from behind and sadistically raised her sword over her head.

“That’s it, squeal some more for me! I love it seeing people like this! It just absolutely gets me going! And to top it all off, I’m going to put you out of your misery!”

The woman widened her eyes as the cold hard truth rained down into the depths of her being. The light in her eyes vanished as did the small sliver of hope in her heart. As time slowed once more for both her and Axel, she turned her head and their eyes met for just a moment as if by chance but guided by fate. One tick after the other banged in his head as once again death walked by Axel and set his scythe over his next target. One second, for that one second he could’ve sworn he read her mind, and all it was that he could hear was,

(Justine Vanks……..my beautiful daughter, I’m sorry…..but momma didn’t find papa….she failed…..I’m so sorry…)

“Don’t-” Axel began but it was too late

Slash

Axel inhaled as he saw her head fly clean off her body. It didn’t go far,but for Axel it felt like an eternity had gone by. As it slowly rolled off into the darkness leaving behind a trail of bright red blood, the shadow hunter whipped her sword clean of blood and proceeded to lick the rest off.

“Man, oh man. It just never gets old I’m telling ya.”

Time returned to normal but Axel did not. His heart ached and his head finally began to throb with pain. His fingers shook and his body felt weak. His eyes felt hot and gray tears poured out.

(I’m…….a piece of shit……) his inner voice quivered.

“Kid! Quickly! Just get out of here!” he heard someone yell off into the distance, but to him it sounded blurred.

The sun finally set and the darkness overflowed. What little warmth was left quickly faded with his spirit. Axel began to hyperventilate as his mind went a mile a second. It just kept playing over and over….the kids dead, the girl burning alive, the mother cold to the touch...how many people had he passed? How many people had died while he decided to remain in the shadows? This woman, he could’ve helped her, so why did he freeze in place? Her head continued to roll in place for him….her death was looping in his mind...over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over!!!!!!!!!

Was it just him or was it snowing? Snowing the purest of pitch black snow?........ And then bam,slight pain from the back of his head…..or was it massive? He wasn’t so sure but just as he thought that the ground suddenly rose to meet his face. It was like he had been pressed up against a wall but surely he hadn’t. The man, colt? He could still faintly see him standing upright trying to get to him. But why? Why did he need him? Why were all the men dressed in black holding him back? Couldn’t they see he was desperately trying to reach Axel? Oh, the ground had turned again. This time, the moon was all that he could see as he felt the ground grind his entire backside painfully like cheese to a grater. Was he being dragged? He couldn’t tell nor fully care, all he knew was that little by little the world was closing up,the pain was fading, and the darkness was completely covering up the silver moon.

_____________

“Erm……..eh…...w-what…...is this?......” Was the first thing he said as he slowly opened his eyes.

It was strange, the room he was in was almost pitch black save for a few shining buttons he could see amidst the shadows. He heard the whistling wind outside but he couldn’t see anything outside of the windows. It looked like a storm of black snow. He continued to look around and eventually stopped when he saw a giant incubator in the middle of the room containing one person inside. The person was floating there wearing only a pair of shorts with many tubes and wires connected to his body. He was a frail looking person with no real muscle or any particular look, he seemed normal. Your everyday joe but with odd night colored hair. It was……..him? Himself completely unconscious floating in an incubator filled with green liquid! But that was impossible. He was looking right at himself!!

“Behold, Axel Ison. You are not dreaming, this is actually happening.” Said someone emerging from behind the incubator. Axel took some steps back as he gasped. It was a girl who seemed young but also old. In a sense that she had lived a long time. She had pure silver hair and her bangs had black highlights. Her hair waved around her as if floating in water. She wore a white dress that also floated outward and had on no shoes. However, what was most interesting about her were her odd eyes. Her pupils appeared to be shaped strangely, a dot with five lines stretching out of it and the ends curling up into swirls. It was mesmerizing.

“Who are you? What’s going on!?” he desperately asked amid the awe he was feeling.

“You need to calm down, okay? Listen to me very carefully.” her silky smooth voice told him.

“That is you. You can say you’re having what they call an “out of body experience”. You’re not dead or anything yet. I am merely part of your hallucinations and I must tell you, “Power Magnet” is in the middle of being extracted from your body. if it fully seperates from you by force, you will die here.”